Brendon Hartley put down a scorching lap this morning to qualify the #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Hypercar on pole for tonight’s World Endurance Championship 6 Hours of Portimao.
His best time, a 1:30.171, pipped teammate Kamui Kobayashi by .273 seconds, the Japanese driver having to settle for second spot in another front-row lockout for Toyota.
“That felt good,” said Hartley. “We put a bit more effort into qualifying this time,e and the car felt amazing over one lap. My lap was very clean and when I crossed the line, I knew it was good, which it had to be with Kamui so close behind.
“Our crew has done an amazing job so thanks to everyone. We made some good steps since first practice. It hasn’t been straightforward because we haven’t been to this track for a while, so we had to work hard to get the set-up right and I didn’t expect to have such a gap today.
“Now we are focusing on the race, and I am expecting a big fight, particularly with Ferrari but Cadillac and Porsche as well. Their race pace looks strong so I am sure it will be close, but we are starting from the front.”
The two new Ferrari Hypercars lock out the second row, with third-placed Nicklas Nielsen over 1.4 seconds off Hartley’s pole-setting time.
Fellow New Zealander Earl Bamber sat the session out, his driving partner Richard Westbrook taking the wheel, and could only manage the eighth-best time in the Cadillac Racing entry.
Porsche Penske will start their two Porsche 963 Hypercars from fifth and seventh, with the first of the Peugeot splitting them. The second Peugeot starts from ninth, with Glickenhaus getting the better of Floyd Vanwall in the battle of the private entries.
The 6 Hours of Portimao begins at 10 pm tonight and is being shown live on Sky Sport 5.
Header Image: Toyota Gazoo Racing
